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  • The Inadequacies of the UN Arms Register

    The shortcomings of the UN Register of Conventional Arms have led to the failure of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). For the Treaty to be robust and meaningful, the weapon systems which will matter in the future must be reflected in the very design of the instrument. Moreover, the Treaty should remain free from biases and prejudices of the past.

    August 24, 2012

    MONUSCO: A Backgrounder

    Despite a humungous infusion of military-logistical support, MONUSCO has achieved little in terms of fulfilling its primary mandate of protecting civilians in the DRC.

    June 22, 2012

    Syrian Turmoil: A Test for the US Position

    The absence of a credible secular substitute for Assad, a divided opposition, and deadlock in the Security Council, are all acting as stumbling blocks for the US wish to unseat Assad from power.

    May 23, 2012

    Libya And R2P: A Year After UNSCR 1973

    The resolution was responsible for sparking off debates in the UN General Assembly and the Security Council which, in turn, has led to the emergence of viable alternatives to military intervention or the use of force.

    May 23, 2012

    India amidst Increased Activity in the Security Council: A Few Observations

    Article 1 of the United Nations Charter declares the maintenance of international peace and security to be the primary function of the United Nations. This makes the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) the most important organ of the whole establishment. All other functions and engagements of the United Nations are in support of the primary cause.

    March 2012

    UN's Role in South Asia: The Case of Nepal

    Nepal has conducted a slew of political experiments since 2006. By inviting the Maoists into the mainstream and collectively deciding to dump the Constitution of 1990, there was hope that a new era of peace and stability would begin with the end of the decade-long armed insurgency. The Constituent Assembly (CA) elections of 2008 saw the emergence of the Maoists as the largest party—which was a totally unexpected and surprising outcome for the international community.

    November 2011

    Scaling the Nuclear Abolition Mountain: Is the United Nations up to the Task?

    Strong motivation is the most important factor in getting you to the top.

    Edmund Hillary (on scaling Mt Everest)

    Some have compared the goal of a nuclear weapons free world to scaling an incredibly high mountain—and the mountain is covered in cloud making the peak invisible. Thus, they argue, all we can do is take small steps up the lower slope—hoping for better conditions in the future that might make it possible to climb higher.

    November 2011

    The Protection of Civilians and the United Nations

    The world has changed significantly since the founding of the United Nations and so have its conflicts. During the mid-twentieth century, the pre-eminent challenge for multilateral cooperation was the awesome prospect of a Third World War. Today, in the aftermath of the Cold War, we see a more elaborated focus on the prevention of conflict and the protection of communities and peoples—both as a sovereign responsibility of the modern nation-state as well as a central focus of the United Nations peace engagements.

    November 2011

    Reforming the United Nations

    Any organisation established in the aftermath of the Second World War obviously cannot fulfil its functions, in a world that has changed so dramatically, without adapting itself to the contemporary realities of international politics and economics.

    When the United Nations Charter was promulgated on 26 June 1945, it reflected the immediate post-war situation and most importantly the international political balance of power that existed in 1945.

    November 2011

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